


Hatchling

by g_girl143



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Single Dad Ben, Single Parents, single dad
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-08
Updated: 2018-08-05
Packaged: 2018-08-07 12:16:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7714561
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/g_girl143/pseuds/g_girl143
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rey's leads a predictable life as a general labourer at Niima Junkyard until an unexpected visit from the daughter she doesn't even know exists turns her world into a tailspin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! This is just a preview of my first Reylo Modern AU. I usually don't post or write fics until I'm done with recent ones I am currently doing (I'm still writing ["What She's Worth"](http://archiveofourown.org/works/6665920/chapters/15245818)) but my muse kept nagging me to at least write the first chapter already so here it is.

Her life was trapped in a predictable routine.

Every day for the last eight years, she would wake up at five in the morning, shower and dress by five thirty, prepare and finish her usual breakfast of oats and milk by six before hopping on to her red jalopy work truck and driving down to her job as a general labourer at Niima Junkyard. Her twelve-hour work shift would then be spent inspecting and sorting scraps and parts, operating mechanized equipment and performing any other tasks as assigned. That last part was her least favourite, because more often than not, it forced her to interact with the junkyard boss Unkar Plutt—a fifty-something obese man with questionable hygiene and even more questionable work ethics. More than once, she’d seen him ogling at her while she worked, and he would ask her to bring him his morning coffee every day, even though he had a secretary who could do just that. But other than the occasional brush of the fingers when she handed him his cup and those beady eyes which seemed to burn through her clothes, he hadn’t done anything to her which would hold up in court—yet. And hopefully, it stayed that way. The last thing she needed was to have to deal with lawyer fees.

Rey sighed as she took off her hard hat and shoved it into her work locker, her eyes instantly on the photo of herself and her grandfather she had taped to the inside of the locker door. Looking at the photo at the end of her shift was also part of her routine, as was reaching out to touch it and trace the smile on her grandfather’s face. It had been one of the last photos she had of Ben Kenobi when he was still in the pink of health, right before cancer ravaged his body. She had done everything she could, took several jobs including this labourer job in Niima Junkyard to shoulder the medical bills but it hadn’t been enough. The only consolation she had was that it brought her a few months more with her grandfather, more than what the doctors had predicted.

Changing from her work overalls and into a white shirt and a pair of khaki shorts, she hopped back into her truck and headed for home, her thoughts already on the mac n cheese she planned to cook for dinner that night as she drove through the same, dusty roads of Jakku, past the same neighbourhood of far between houses before reaching her own house. It was small compared to others in town, and it was desperately in need of a paint job but it was home.

Parking the truck by the side of the house, she stepped out of the vehicle and took a moment to look up at the night sky—yet another routine of hers. As always, the stars were out in full glory, uninhibited by light pollution which prevailed in bigger cities.

She turned and walked towards the house, ready to start the day’s final routine of dinner, a little bit of TV, then sleep—until she saw a little girl standing on the porch.

 _“Well, this is new,”_ Rey thought, watching as the girl’s eyes widened at her approach. She almost never had visitors, least of all a girl of...seven? Eight? “Hello there, sweetie. Are you lost?”

The girl opened her mouth but no words came out. Rey was now close enough that she could see the faint freckles over the girl’s cute button nose, the speckles of brown over the hazel of her eyes, the chapped skin of her lips, and the large ears hidden beneath waves of waist-length dark hair. She was also quite pale, which, aside from the pink sweater, red pleated skirt, black leggings and boots she wore, told Rey the girl was definitely not from the desert town of Jakku.

Rey beamed the warmest smile she could. Hopefully the girl will feel a bit more at ease, she thought. “Hey, don’t worry. I don’t bite. If you’re lost, I could go and call for help.”

“I...I’m not lost. I think,” the girl finally spoke, her voice coming out almost in a squeak. “Are you...Rey Kenobi?”

“Yes, that’s me.”

“Oh my God!” the girl gasped, hands clasped over her mouth. “It’s really you!”

“Uhm...yes, it’s really me,” Rey parroted, brows knitting in confusion. “Am I missing something?”

“Oh, I’m sorry.” The girl giggled, hands now moving to cup her face, her eyes practically sparkling. “I’m just so happy to finally meet you. You’re more beautiful than I could ever have imagined!”

“Well, thank you. That’s...sweet of you.” Rey shifted her weight from one foot to the other, an uneasy fluttering at the pit of her stomach. “I’m sorry, but who are you?”

“I’m...uh...” The girl looked away for a moment, her face now flushed pink. “Okay. I don’t know how else to say this. And it might shock you, but uhm...I’ll just go ahead and say it.” She took in a deep breath, looked Rey straight in the eye and said, “I’m your daughter.”

Rey blinked and stilled. Any other single twenty-seven-year-old who hadn’t had a boyfriend in years would’ve dropped to the floor laughing. To have a girl show up at your doorstep, claiming to be yours when you’d never even seen the inside of a maternity ward was preposterous. But Rey wasn’t any other twenty-seven-year-old. And as her mind raced back to a visit to an egg donor clinic nine years ago, it was all she could do to hold on to the porch’s railing before the floor rushed up to meet her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the sudden appearance of a daughter she never even knew existed, Rey is about to have an even more exciting night...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know. It's been almost a year since this was last updated so I thank you guys especially those who bookmarked this for being so patient with the late update. I'm not sure when the next one will be but hopefully it won't take as long. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this next installment :)

“This isn’t funny, Finn,” Rey hissed over the phone as her best friend cackled over the receiver. “I’ve got an eight-year-old who looks like me in the kitchen right now, cooking mac n’ cheese.”

“While you’re nursing a bump on the head with cold steak,” Finn finished. “Seriously? You don’t find the situation funny?”

“No. And you wouldn’t either if it happened to you,” Rey shot back and groaned. She readjusted the steak over where her head had hit the railing. Damn her for forgetting to put in some ice in the fridge.

“Ain’t happening to me, peanut. Poe and I are adopting.”

“Oh, really? When?”

“Not anytime soon , love.” Rey heard a pause from Finn’s end of the line before he continued with the same mirthful tone. “Hey, if you don’t like the kid, maybe you can have us adopt her.”

“You’re kidding right?”

“Of course I’m kidding, Rey. She’s all yours.”

“Apparently, she’s not.” Rey took a peek in the kitchen and saw the girl—her _daughter_ , she shivered—still stirring a pot of mac n’ cheese. She had insisted that Rey rest and that she knew how to cook. By the smell of things, the kid was telling the truth. “She said she lives with her dad but she wouldn’t tell me his name or where she lives. Seems she doesn’t want to go back.”

“She ran away?”

“Most likely.” Rey sighed heavily and went back to where she had been lying down earlier on the couch, her headache increasing tenfold when she realized all the trouble she might get into for harboring this girl. “Looks like I’m going to have to try to pry information out of her and get her home ASAP. God forbid, her dad might charge me for kidnapping.”

Finn laughed again. It was starting to grate on Rey’s nerves. “Well, good luck with that, hon. And hey, I might visit one of these days. You’ve gotten me really curious about this little Rey spawn.”

“You better visit soon.” Rey gave a sideways glance at the girl in the kitchen before adding in a low voice, “I’m hoping she won’t stay here long. I don’t know how to take care of kids.”

“I’m sure you’ll do fine, peanut,” Finn reassured. “You did well back when Poe and I had you take care of BB8 for a while.”

Rey rolled her eyes. “Hannah’s not a dog.”

“Hannah? Is that her name?”

“Yeah. She told me that much at least.” Rey chewed on her bottom lip—a nervous habit of hers. “Now I just gotta find a way to trick her into giving me her last name.”

“Oh, I’m sure you will,” Finn said in such a way that inspired confidence, and Rey relaxed once more. “If there’s anything you need at all—diapers, baby bottles, baby clothes—just let me know.”

“Very funny, Finn.” Despite herself, Rey managed a smile. Her best friend always did manage to lighten her moods. “Actually, there is one thing. I seem to recall you mentioning Poe knows this hotshot lawyer. I need to know my rights as well as ways to protect myself in case Hannah’s father ends up suing my ass.”

“No promises on that, peanut. That hotshot lawyer’s a senator now so she’s quite busy.” Finn was quiet for a moment. “But you’re right. I’ll see if Poe and I can do something. Meantime, give my love to Hannah.”

“And give my love to Poe and BB8.” Rey said her goodbyes before ending the call and heading for her small kitchen. Hannah was still cooking. The scene reminded Rey of when she used to cook for her grandfather when she was little. She used to cook a lot for Grandpa Ben back then…

Hannah looked up and beamed a wide smile, her dimples—astonishingly similar to Rey’s—deepening on her cheeks. “Hey, Mommy. Dinner’s almost ready.”

Rey shuddered at the term ‘mommy’. “Right. I’ll go...set the table.”

Putting the steak back in the fridge, Rey hurried to set the table while Hannah carefully took the pot from the stove and poured the mac n’ cheese into two bowls.

Once everything was set, the girl plopped on to her seat and began to eat. Rey stared at her for a moment then began to say grace, stopping Hannah mid-eating before she followed suit, hands clasped in quiet prayer until Rey finished.

“I’m sorry,” Hannah apologized. “I...we don’t really say grace at home. At least, I never saw Daddy do it.”

Rey decided she already didn’t like Hannah’s dad. “My late grandpa taught me food is a blessing, so we should always be thankful.”

“Okay, Mommy.”

Rey cringed again, and after a few spoonfuls of mac n' cheese, which was surprisingly good, she set her spoon down. “Hannah...maybe it’s best...that you don’t call me Mommy.”

“Oh...why?”

Rey bit her lip. She could see the girl was trying her best not to appear hurt, and so she chose her next words carefully. “It’s not that I don’t want you to. It’s just...I feel like I haven’t earned it. I’m almost a stranger. Besides, your mommy might get hurt if you call someone else mommy.”

“I don’t have a mommy,” Hannah informed, making Rey’s brows rise to her forehead. “You’re my only mommy.”

“You mean to say your daddy doesn’t have a wife?”

Hannah shook her head, her dark, wavy hair moving from side to side. “Daddy’s single. He’s never been married.”

“But he must have had someone...” Rey hesitated. How in the world was she going to tell this kid about the birds and the bees especially when the situation was more complicated?

“Daddy had a surrogate,” Hannah supplied, much to Rey’s astonishment. “You gave your egg to the clinic, then they mixed it with Daddy’s sperm, then they injected your fertilized egg into the surrogate who then gave birth to me.”

Rey opened her mouth to speak, but found she couldn’t. At least, not for a good few seconds.  “H-How did you...”

“Grandma told me.” Hannah helped herself to more of the mac n’ cheese before continuing. “I know where babies come from. But I didn’t come naturally, that’s for sure.”

This surprised Rey, and not just because the girl seemed so knowledgeable for her tender age of eight. She had never, in her life, heard of a single unmarried man opting for an egg donor. “If that’s the case...your father must have really wanted to have you...”

Hannah sighed. “I wouldn't say Daddy wanted me as much as he needed me.”

Rey's brows knitted. “What do you mean?”

Silence. Rey looked up to see Hannah staring at her bowl, her lips tight in a fine line.

After a moment, the girl shook her head and smiled. “How's the mac n' cheese?”

Rey blinked at the sudden change of topic. But she wasn't about to give up on talk about the girl's father yet. “Good. It's good. Did your daddy teach you how to cook?”

“No,” Hannah shook her head, her smile disappearing. Already, Rey realized talking about her father upset Hannah. “Daddy isn't around enough to teach me. He's always working.”

Ah, Rey thought. Now they were getting somewhere. “Is that why you ran away? Because your daddy doesn't have time for you?”

Rey watched Hannah take a spoonful of mac n' cheese before chewing it slowly. The swallow seemed even slower.

Then, the girl shrugged and carried on eating.

Rey leaned forward, her food already forgotten. “Hannah, sweetie, I'm sure your daddy is only doing what's best for you. Why, he's probably home right now, worried sick about you.”

“No he's not.” Hannah pouted. “He's never around. He probably won't know I'm gone even when he does get back home.”

“Honey, you don't know that.”

“Yeah, I do,” Hannah replied with conviction. “I've run away before. He didn't even know I was gone for two days until my grandma called him.”

Rey found herself tightening her fingers around her utensils. How could a father be so neglectful as to not even notice that his own child was gone? What if something bad had happened to the girl while traveling to Jakku? And by herself no less?

Keeping a sudden bout of anger in check, Rey breathed out and said, “So...where did you go? When you ran away last?”

“To my grandma's.” There was warmth in Hannah's voice when she mentioned her grandmother. “She taught me how to cook and take care of myself. But grandma is so busy these days too so I couldn't really go to her.”

“And...is that why you decided to go to me instead?” Rey asked.

Hannah seemed to think for a moment. “Yes and no. I mean...I've wanted to meet you ever since I learned about where I came from. Of course Daddy wouldn’t tell me about you. It was grandma who tracked you down. For my birthday last year.”

If Rey had food in her mouth, she probably would have choked. The girl may be smart for her age, but not knowledgeable enough of legalities surrounding her birth. How could Hannah's grandmother have gotten information about her? How could the clinic give away her personal information? As far as she could recall, her contract had a right to privacy clause! Rey began to wonder if she could sue both the clinic and the grandmother. Unless Hannah's father sued her for kidnapping first...

Seemingly perturbed by the silence, Hannah piped in. "All I wanted for my birthday was to know who you are. Grandma tracked you down for me, and now, I’m here and I’m very happy. You’re so beautiful and nice."

Rey's smile was strained. Hannah's smile however was bright, if not adorable. She really did want this, Rey thought. She wanted so badly to meet her mother. How could she take that away from her?

Still...

Rapid knocks at the front door interrupted Rey's musings. She stood up from the table, holding her hand up to Hannah as she did. “Stay here, Hannah. I'll be back.”

The knocking continued, even more frantic this time.

“Coming!” Rey called and hurried to the door. As if her night wasn't already exciting enough, she thought sarcastically. “Hold your horses, I'm coming.”

Rey reached for the knob and opened the door wide, thinking it was probably one of the neighbors off to borrow some tools again.

She should've known tonight was different from most nights.

There, standing on her porch, was a tall man in a business suit, his dark, wavy hair reaching down to his nape, and combed in such a way as to hide a pair of clearly oversized ears. His eyes—shielded by a pair of rectangular glasses—were dark and intense, his lips curled down to a frown.

“Where is she?” the man asked in a deep baritone, his tone putting Rey on her guard.

Before Rey could respond, the man walked past her and quickly made his way through her small house, reaching the kitchen in no time with his long strides before emerging with a struggling Hannah by his side.

The sight of the girl being dragged by her arm was what finally made Rey speak up. “What do you think you're doing? Let her go!”

Almost on instinct, Rey pulled Hannah away from the man's grasp and positioned herself in front of the girl.

“Just who do you think you are?” the man flared up.

“I should ask you the same thing,” Rey fired back. “How dare you barge in here and try to take my daughter away? I should call the cops on you.”

“Your dau—” The man trailed off and stared at her for a long while. Astonishment clear in his eyes, he turned to Hannah and shook his head. “Hannah, what have you done?”

Rey blinked and turned to Hannah, who was peeking up at the man from behind her. “Sweetie, do you know this man?”

Hannah said nothing. Only buried her face at the back of Rey's shirt.

“Of course, she knows who I am,” the man seethed. “I'm Ben Solo. And I'm Hannah's father.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I'm still feeling the Stormpilot feels so that stays. Besides, it's also for the plot. Hope you guys enjoyed this one. Until next time!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic is unbeta'd so kindly forgive any mistakes that may be there. Hope you enjoy reading!

Rey stood in her small living room, wincing as Hannah took in her father's verbal lashing. It wasn't as though Hannah didn't deserve it, Rey thought. Mr. Solo had every right to be angry, but she didn't realize how much it would hurt to see the girl being scolded like this.

“I work my ass off just so you could live a good life and this is how you repay me? By running off to some...some stranger?” Mr. Solo fumed.

“She's not a stranger,” Hannah said defiantly, even as she sank deeper into the couch she was sitting in. “She's my mommy.”

“She's still a stranger,” Mr. Solo said through clenched teeth. “You don't know her and I certainly don't know her.”

“I know enough.” Hannah’s voice was insistent, though not as firm as earlier. “Grandma had a background check done on her. She's not a criminal, Daddy.”

Rey bit her lip, not quite sure how to take in the sudden news that she had been investigated on. How much did Hannah know about her exactly?

“Did your grandma put you up to this?” Mr. Solo demanded.

Hannah shook her head. “This was all my idea.”

“All your idea huh?” Mr. Solo scoffed and ran his hands over his hair, mussing the once perfect waves. “Well, how about this idea then? We’re going home. We’re going to get out of this hick town and you’re going to think about what you’ve done, you hear me?”

Again, Mr. Solo held Hannah’s arm roughly in his grasp. It was more than what Rey could take, and without thinking, she stepped up to block Mr. Solo’s way.

“No,” she mustered with more courage than she really had.

“No?” Mr. Solo parroted. “What do you mean ‘no’?”

“I mean no.” Rey shook her head. “An eight-year-old genetic daughter doesn’t just suddenly show up at my doorstep and leave just like that. She has chosen to insert herself into my life, and so like it or not, she’s a part of it and so are you.”

Mr. Solo seemed to freeze in his spot, and Rey had the impression that not many people stood up to him. It took a while for his sagged shoulders to square up again and for his initial shock to evolve into anger.

“You have no parental rights over her,” he hissed. “You relinquished that the moment you signed the contract. You’re not her mother.”

“Yes, she is!” Hannah cried out, and much to Rey’s surprise, managed to get away from her father’s grip and run towards her, wrapping her arms around her waist. “She’s my mommy, Daddy! And I want to stay with her!”

Rey felt her heart lurch up to her throat, her gaze falling to the girl who was still clinging to her side. She hadn’t wanted them to leave, but stay?

“Hannah…” Mr. Solo’s tone was grave. “Don’t make this anymore complicated than it already is.”

Hannah didn’t reply. But Rey felt the girl tighten her arms around her.

Rey bit the inside of her cheek. A few hours ago, she had just been living her life as normal and now here comes a daughter, bringing with her a whole range of complications. She didn't need this drama any more than she needed a bump on the head. She knew that. But for some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to side with Mr. Solo on this one, and not just because of his attitude.

A ringtone interrupted Rey's musings, and she looked up to see Mr. Solo take out his mobile phone, stare at the screen for a moment before putting the phone against his ear.

“Mother.” Mr. Solo’s greeting was curt. “Yes, I found her. Her phone’s GPS tracker led me all the way to Outer Rim State…Yes, in Jakku…She ran away to her _mother_.”

A long pause. Mr. Solo’s expression seemed to turn even grimmer as he pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers, raising his spectacles up to eyebrow-level. “Yes, her biological mother. She says her name is Rey Kenobi…Yes, Kenobi. Now what I’m wondering is how on earth you managed to get that information and how could you give it to Hannah? You know this girl can get some funny ideas—”

Another long pause. From where she was standing, Rey could hear some unintelligible words coming from the phone, followed by a deep sigh from Mr. Solo.

To her surprise, Mr. Solo handed her the phone. “My mother wants to talk to you.”

Rey gingerly took the mobile device and stared at it for a second before answering. “Hello?”

She expected anger. She expected a tirade of expletives and maybe even threats.

But she never expected profuse apologies to spill out from the phone.

“Ms. Kenobi, I'm Hannah’s grandmother. I’m so, so sorry for all of this. I tracked you down for her because she said she wanted to meet you someday. I never realized she’d actually do this on her own. I really apologize for the inconvenience this has caused you.”

“It’s okay,” Rey assured. “I’m just glad she was able to arrive here safely.”

“Really? That's so sweet of you dear.” The voice on the phone had the kind of warmth that Rey liked, and all thoughts of taking legal action for intruding upon her privacy slowly flew out the window. “Uhm Ms. Kenobi, you just let us know what you want to do here. You want to get to know us, you want us to go away…you have no obligation. Hannah understands that.”

Rey let out a breath, her eyes darting off to Hannah then to Mr. Solo then back to Hannah again.

“I…wouldn’t mind getting to know her,” Rey blurted out, much to her own surprise, and clearly Mr. Solo’s. “She did travel all the way here for me. The least I could do is to maybe…let her and her father stay the night.”

The words were out before Rey could stop them. What the hell was she thinking?

“That’s a good idea,” Hannah’s grandmother agreed before Rey could say anything more. “It’s getting late anyway. I’d like to talk to my son again, please. Thank you so much, Ms. Kenobi.”

Rey said her goodbye and handed the phone to a clearly upset Mr. Solo.

“Mother, what in the world—” Mr. Solo raised a hand to his hair again, curling his fingers in angry fists. “But I’ve still got work tomorrow…Alright, alright.”

Mr. Solo ended the call with a deep breath, threw a glare at Rey before facing his daughter.

“One night,” he said. “One night, Hannah, and then we go home. Got that?”

“Yipee!” Hannah jumped off the sofa and wrapped her arms around her father’s waist. “Thank you, Daddy!”

“Yeah, yeah,” Mr. Solo said grumpily, though for a second, Rey thought she saw the hint of a smile on his full lips.

“You hear that, Rey?” Hannah turned to Rey, a dimpled smile on her face. “We get to stay the night! Isn’t it great?”

“Yey,” Rey said in a small voice and with an even smaller smile when she saw Mr. Ben Solo’s grim expression.

What in the world was she getting herself into?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm actually just writing this as I go so there's no set date on when the next chapter will be. Hope you guys enjoyed this and to keep up to speed with this fic, don't forget to bookmark it :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for a long chapter. Thanks to Shwtlee for beta-reading this chapter! Also to my husband Jamaeda for listening to me rattle on about this fic :)

Whatever ruckus they had made during their heated exchanges earlier died the moment they sat down for dinner once more. Already Rey realized that Mr. Solo’s presence put a damper on Hannah’s talkativeness. And as she sat on the table quietly finishing up her bowl of mac n’ cheese while stealing glances at the equally quiet father and daughter, she wondered how in the world she was going to break the ice. She wanted to get to know the girl—get to know _her daughter_ —didn’t she? So why wasn’t she making an effort at small talk?

The clatter of a spoon being set down on the table made Rey look up at Mr. Solo, who had finished eating and was now wiping his mouth with a napkin.

“Thank you for the meal, Ms. Kenobi,” he said. “It was good.”

Rey shook her head. “Please, call me Rey. And it was Hannah who cooked, not me.”

“Did she, now?” Mr. Solo threw a glance at Hannah, who grinned back at him.

“Was it really good, Daddy?”

Mr. Solo only nodded, then turned to Rey again. Rey saw Hannah deflate, as though her hopes had been dashed. Rey surmised compliments from her father must be few and far between, so she reached out and patted the girl’s hand.

“It’s really good, Hannah. Thank you.” Rey smiled in earnest. Hannah’s smile returned, and Rey pulled her hand back before turning to Mr. Solo again.

“Mr. Solo…”

“Ben.”

Rey blinked. “What?”

“Call me Ben,” Mr. Solo continued, frowning. “Only my employees call me Mr. Solo.”

“Okay…Ben.” The name sounded thick in her mouth, and Rey found it hard to swallow. It wasn’t just weird that he shared the same name as her late grandfather; she also wasn’t really comfortable being on a first name basis with a total stranger. But wasn’t she the one who started it? Didn’t she want to make them comfortable with her? “So uh…sleeping arrangements, yes? There’s another room that used to be my grandpa’s. The bed’s big so you two should fit—”

“We’re sleeping already?” Hannah almost stood up from her chair. “But it’s still early. And I still want to get to know Rey.”

“Hannah, I’m sure Rey is tired from a long day—”

“It’s fine,” Rey interrupted, earning her a raised eyebrow from Mr. Solo. Or Ben, as he had insisted on being called. “Hannah’s right. It’s still too early for bed and we shouldn’t go to sleep so soon after eating. Also, I did say I want to get to know her.”

Hannah seemed to perk up at that, and a wide grin slowly spread across her face. “Wait here.”

Rey watched as the girl stood up and ran towards the living room. She could hear the unzipping of a bag—probably Hannah’s luggage—followed by some rustling.

She raised her eyes at Ben and found him staring at her. She felt her cheeks flush and she quickly looked away. There was an intensity in his gaze that unnerved her.

“So…” Ben leaned forward and clasped his hands together. “Tell me, Rey. Are you in the habit of taking in strange kids into your home?”

Something about that question, or the way he said it rubbed Rey the wrong way, and she found herself crossing her arms. “Only those who claim to be my biological child.”

Ben raised his eyebrows. “And you just took her word for it?”

“Well clearly, I know I am an egg donor,” Rey huffed, her voice taking on a slight edge. “And whether you admit it or not, Hannah looks a lot like me.”

“I can see that she does,” Ben nodded. “If it weren’t for her ears, I would’ve thought she wasn’t mine.”

Rey felt her shoulders relax, and she managed a little smile. Perhaps Ben was just as terrible at starting small talk as she was. “She has your hair and complexion too you know.”

“But she has your freckles and dimples,” Ben continued. “And apparently, she inherited your personality.”

Rey’s brows knitted. Had this man been smiling, she would’ve thought he was trying to be lighthearted. But no. He was neither smiling, nor had he spoken in a mirthful tone. He sounded dead serious, and his expression reflected it.

“What do you mean by that?” Rey asked.

Either unperturbed by the returning edge in her voice, or if he simply chose to ignore it, Ben leaned forward and said, “My daughter is quite obstinate and defiant. Doesn’t know when to listen and as you well know now from her running away, doesn’t know how to follow the rules.”

Rey’s jaw dropped, and it took a few seconds for her to formulate her next words. “You think I’m like that? How could judge me like that? We just met!”

Ben leaned back in his chair, his expression unchanged. “Well, she certainly didn’t get it from me.”

“Or maybe you aren’t raising her right,” Rey threw back.

She saw Ben’s eye twitch and his full lips flatten into a thin line. She hadn’t meant to say it like that, but it worked at shutting him up.

Buoyed by this, Rey continued, “She told me you aren’t home enough. So much so she had to learn to take care of herself at such a young age.”

“Which is a good thing,” Ben fired back. “Independence is an admirable trait.”

“She’s eight for crying out loud,” Rey hissed, trying her best to lower her voice even though all she wanted to do was to scream at this man’s face. Hannah was still in the living room after all. “She still needs a parent to be around—”

“What do you know about raising kids anyway?” Ben spat. “By the looks of things, you don’t have one of your own.”

“Well, I do now,” Rey said, much to her own surprise as well as Ben’s. This man was pressing all the wrong buttons and it was all she could do to reign in her anger.

“That remains to be seen,” Ben noted grimly, one finger raised in the air. “There are certain legalities at play here, or have you forgotten that?”

“You’re a monster,” Rey cursed under her breath. It was an exaggeration to be sure, but this man was really grating on her nerves, even more so when he smirked in response to her comment.

“Now who’s judging who?” he drawled, just as Hannah came back to the dining room with her tablet.

Rey watched the girl turn from her to her father and ask, “Did I miss something?”

“No dear,” Rey did her best to smile, even as she was still seething. “What have you got for me?”

“Photos.” Hannah raced to Rey’s side and took a seat, handing the tablet over for her to see. “You weren’t able to see me grow up so I thought it was a good idea to show you these.”

“That’s…thoughtful of you,” Rey mused, genuinely touched by the gesture. Her anger slowly dissipating, she leaned over to look as Hannah began pointing and describing photo after photo.

“This was when I was first brought home from the hospital. That’s Daddy holding me.”

Rey tilted her head, then darted her eyes up at Ben. He looked vastly different in the photo with a baby Hannah in his arms. For one thing, he wasn’t wearing glasses. For another, his hair was longer, dark waves cascading down to his neck. But the biggest difference was that he was looking down at Hannah with what seemed to Rey like all the love in the world.

“What?” Ben asked, arms crossed over his chest. It was only then that Rey realized she had been staring.

“Nothing.” Rey turned back to the tablet and watched as Hannah showed her more—pictures and videos of her first crawl, her first steps, her first birthday, then the second, and the next and the next. In all of them, Ben was present, smiling and happy, seemingly delighted by his little girl.

There were photos and videos of Hannah with her grandparents as well. The grandmother was diminutive while her husband was imposing, and Rey saw where Ben had gotten his height, though his features were a mix of both his parents.

Then, there was the photo of Hannah, sitting on the lap of her grandfather, now a frail old man, bald down to his eyebrows, with a sunken look on his wan face.

Rey’s breath caught. She knew that look all too well. It was the look of a man dying from cancer.

“That’s my Grandpa Han,” Hannah said in a soft voice. “I was named after him. He had lung cancer. He died last year.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Rey said just as softly. “My Grandpa Ben died of cancer too. He died nine years ago.”

“Your grandpa has the same name as Daddy.”

“Apparently, yes. His name was Benedict Kenobi.”

“Oh. Daddy’s name is Benjamin,” Hannah remarked, as she swiped past more pictures of her and her late grandfather, until she reached a photo of her at Han Solo’s hospital bedside. “Grandpa Han fought cancer like a champ. He had it since before I was born and fought for years. How long did your grandpa fight, Rey?”

“Not that long.” Rey shifted in her seat. She wasn’t very comfortable with the subject, and she felt herself at the verge of tears.

But Hannah was relentless. “How long? And what did he have?”

“Hannah,” came a voice from across the table, and Rey looked up to see Ben pushing his glasses up to the bridge of his nose. “Why don’t you show Rey other pictures besides that?”

Rey watched as Hannah blinked then turn towards her, her eyes widening with understanding. “Oh! Okay, Daddy.”

Relief swelled inside of Rey, and she almost found herself thanking Ben, but stopped herself just in time. He may have changed the subject for her, but he was still a jerk, she thought.

The minutes ticked by and after Hannah had finished going through all the pictures and videos on her tablet, Rey already learned a lot about the girl. She was smart, if those pictures of her and her medals and awards from school were anything to go by. She loved to cook and kept her room tidy. She loved to sing and draw. Like most girls, she loved dolls and kept them neatly lined up at a shelf in her room. She seemed not to want for anything. Her grandparents were immensely proud of her…and her father was too…that was, until shortly after Han Solo’s death.

That was when things probably went downhill, Rey observed, recalling the pictures of a grim faced family during the funeral, and the fewer photos of Hannah with her dad after that until it was just Hannah and occasionally her grandmother in the pictures. Hannah had explained that her grandfather used to run a shipping company and that his son Ben had had to take over when Han’s health took a turn for the worse.

Rey nodded, her eyes darting briefly to Ben. Now she understood why he’d said something about working his ass off—why Hannah had mentioned he was barely home. Running a company couldn’t be easy, Rey imagined, but that still wasn’t a good enough excuse for child neglect.

“How about you, Rey?” Hannah asked as she put her phone down. “Do you have pictures that I can look at?”

“Uh, sure.” Rey stood up and went to the living room, kneeling down the coffee table so she could retrieve a large photo album.

Once back in the dining room, she shared the photographs of her growing years with Hannah, and much like the girl did earlier, pointed at photo after photo, explaining what was going on and who she was with, which was mostly with her Grandpa Ben.

She hoped Hannah wouldn’t notice, but the girl was sharp and instantly discerned something. “Where are your Mommy and Daddy?”

Again, Rey shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “They’re not around.”

“Oh? Where are they?”

 That was a question Rey had asked her grandfather for years, she thought, not without a hint of bitterness, and she wasn’t sure what to tell the girl, or if she wanted to tell her at all. They were just getting to know each other after all but this was walking on mighty fine ice. “They’re…just not around.”

Hannah didn’t seem to take the hint. Or perhaps curiosity got the best of her because she continued to probe. “Do they work late like Daddy does? Is that why they’re not around?”

“Hannah.” Again, Ben’s voice rang from across the table, though this time he had taken on a gentler tone. “Why don’t you let Rey show you more pictures, hmm? I’m sure she’d want to tell you more about her Grandpa Ben. Isn’t that right, Rey?”

“Huh? Oh, yes.” Rey straightened in her seat, surprised and relieved once more that Ben had steered them away from the topic. He was still a jerk though, she thought.

Rey spent the next few minutes talking about her grandfather—how he had raised her from when she was five, how he’d worked as a professor at the local college, but glossed over his death from cancer. Almost a decade may have passed, but it was still a painful memory to relive.

Ironically, it was her grandfather’s illness which led her to the very situation she was in—talking to _her daughter_.

“Rey?”

“Sorry, I was just thinking.” Rey beamed a smile at Hannah. “I think that’s all the pictures I have to show you. Anything else you want to do?”

“Yes.” Hannah grabbed her tablet again and began pressing the screen. “I’ve prepared a list of questions that I’ve always wanted to ask you. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Uhm, sure.” Rey set the photo album aside and sat up in her seat, hands clasped on her lap.

Hannah began with some mundane questions: What’s your favorite color? Green, like forest green. What’s your favorite food? Spaghetti and meatballs. What are your hobbies? Sketching, singing, and making art from scraps. What are your pet peeves? Rude people. And she said this while side-eyeing Ben. Any pets? No, but I babysit my friend’s corgi every now and then.

Hannah continued firing question after question, and Rey answered them all. Then came the harder questions:

“Do you have a boyfriend?”

Rey’s answer was a swift “No.”

Hannah scrunched up her nose. “Why not?”

“Because I’m not looking into getting into a relationship right now,” Rey answered truthfully.

“Neither is Daddy,” Hannah quipped and turned to Ben. “Daddy’s never had a girlfriend.”

Rey was quick to note how Ben’s ears turned beet red and how his nostrils flared. “I go on dates,” he said, his tone defensive. “I’m just not looking to commit right now. And let’s not make this about me, Hannah. You want to ask Rey more questions, don’t you?”

“Okay, Daddy.” Hannah nodded and turned back to her tablet before continuing: What is your goal in life? To make my grandfather proud. What is your philosophy in life? Life is too short to miss out on being happy. What is your greatest dream in life?

“To have a family of my own,” Rey answered, and as soon as she did, she felt a blush creep up her cheeks. “I mean, after losing my grandfather, I just…I…”

“Is that why you agreed to get to know me?” Hannah asked softly. “Because you want family?”

“I…I suppose.” Rey’s eyes flitted to Ben for a moment, and she found his expression had softened somewhat. “It’s silly…and somewhat selfish I know.”

Hannah shook her head. “It’s not. I want the same thing, Rey.”

Rey would have smiled had she not seen the flash of hurt in Ben’s eyes. “You have family, Hannah. You have your Daddy and your Grandma.”

“I know,” Hannah said in a small voice, which told Rey that while yes, she did have family, it wasn’t enough. The girl needed a mother, Rey thought, and she felt her heart break a little.

And finally, came the hardest question of all.

“If you knew…” Hannah began, and Rey noticed the way the girl’s fingers tightened around her tablet. “If you knew I was out there, would you have tried to find me?”

Rey was stymied. She could feel both Ben’s and Hannah’s eyes on her as she weighed in on how she would answer. Clearing her throat, she sat up straight and spoke truthfully. “No, I wouldn’t have, sweetheart. You see…like your Daddy said, I signed a contract relinquishing all claims I have towards you. I’m not even supposed to talk to you.”

Rey saw Hannah’s shoulders slump and her grip on her tablet loosen. The girl looked like she was close to tears, so Rey quickly put a hand on Hannah’s shoulder and added, “But you know what? I’m glad to have met you, even if it’s just for a little while. You’re a very sweet girl and I’m happy that you are my biological daughter.”

Hannah looked up, eyes shimmering with tears but a semblance of a smile on her face. “You really mean that?”

Rey smiled back. “Every word.”

With that, Hannah rose from her chair and threw her arms around Rey, much to her surprise. “I’m happy too, Rey. I’m happy you’re my biological mother.”

Rey felt warmth bloom in her chest, and she found herself hugging Hannah back. It was in that moment that she realized how much she wanted this child in her life, and she began to wish she hadn’t signed that contract all those years ago. But what was done was done, and all she could do was savor the little time she had with the girl while it lasted.

When it was time to let go, Rey found that she did so with great reluctance. “Hey, how about some dessert? I’ve got ice cream in the fridge.”

“Ice cream,” Hannah exclaimed with a clap before turning towards her father, who was, Rey realized, looking at her with the strangest expression on his face. “Can we have ice cream, Daddy? Can we?”

“Why not?” Ben shrugged. “I could use some ice cream.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we're at the getting-to-know-you stage but they have such a short time to be together. Next chapter will still be the same night. We need to stretch this out for as long as possible eh? Get ready for more fluff in the next chapter. Not sure when it will be posted, but I'll work on it. Meanwhile, thank you so much guys for reading Hatchling!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An update! Finally! I hope you guys are still around. I know this fic doesn't get updated as often but I hope you have it still bookmarked and that you're still sticking around for updates. I can't promise frequent updates, mostly as I am still trying to figure out myself where the story goes but I will definitely update eventually. Anyway, hope you enjoy reading this chapter :)

Rey spent the rest of the evening eating ice cream and swapping stories with Hannah while Ben remained quiet in his little corner. By the time they had finished half the gallon of ice cream, Rey felt as though she had known Hannah for most of her life. The girl could talk as streak…well, so long as her father kept silent, which was what Ben did, and Rey was secretly grateful for that. There was even a moment when she forgot he was still in the room.

Then, Hannah began to yawn, and Rey’s eyes moved towards clock on the wall. It was nearly eleven.

“It’s getting pretty late,” she declared, not without a hint of regret. “I think we should all head to bed. You guys can stay in my grandpa’s old room.”

She stood up, as did Ben, both of them reaching out to help Hannah off her seat.

That was when Rey felt Ben’s fingers brush against hers, and she instantly jerked back.

“S-Sorry,” Rey mumbled, then internally kicked herself when Ben didn’t respond. She shouldn’t even have acknowledged the physical contact. Now she just looked stupid.

“I…didn’t bring any toiletries with me,” Ben admitted, and the sheepish way he said it made Rey raise her eyebrows. It was weird to hear this proud, obnoxious man sound well…embarrassed. “I was such in a hurry to get here I didn’t have time for anything else.”

“I’ve got spare toothbrushes. You and Hannah can use those,” Rey offered. “And my grandpa has some old pajamas that might fit you.”

Ben shook his head. “No thanks. I’ll just sleep in my clothes.”

Rey didn’t say anything, but it was a relief that Ben declined. She only offered the pajamas to be polite, but she’d rather not have anyone else wearing her dead grandfather’s clothes.

Rey led Hannah and Ben to the bathroom, leaving them to do their business while she busied herself in preparing her grandfather’s old room. She had kept it as clean as the rest of the house, but she figured some fresh sheets for her unexpected guests were in order.

By the time she was done, Hannah and Ben had emerged from the bathroom, Hannah in her pajamas (she had apparently prepared enough clothes to stay for a longer duration, Rey figured), while Ben had his coat and necktie draped over his arm, the sleeves of his white buttoned shirt rolled up to his elbows.

Rey gestured to the bed. “You two should fit in here just fine.”

Hannah hurried to the bed, jumping on the mattress for a good three or four times, which caused Rey to smile. Hannah was still very much a little girl.

“The bed is big,” Hannah declared, then beamed Rey a toothy grin. “Why don’t you sleep here with us, Rey? That way, it’ll really feel like a sleep over.”

“N-No,” Rey said, and thought she heard an echo in her voice. It took a second for her to realize Ben had spoken the same time she did, and she glanced up at him, her eyes widening in surprise when she saw him staring back at her too, his face flushed with clear embarrassment.

She quickly looked away. “Hannah, sweetie, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Why not?”

“Well…we may all fit, but I don’t think we would be comfortable,” she explained as gently as she could. That didn’t stop the look of disappointment from shadowing Hannah’s face.

With a sigh, Rey approached the girl and chucked her under the chin. “Tell you what. Why don’t you sleep now, then tomorrow we’ll wake up bright and early so we can prepare breakfast together. How’s that?”

The smile returned to Hannah’s face. “Sounds great.” Then, she rose up on her knees to plant a kiss on Rey’s cheek. “Good night, Rey.”

There it was again. That tug in her heart, and Rey felt her lips widen into a smile. “Good night, sweetie.”

Hannah smiled back and yawned, stretching her arms over her head before lying down. Rey knew she was just prolonging the inevitable parting, but she fluffed up her daughter’s pillow anyway and tucked the blanket beneath her chin before planting a kiss on the girl’s forehead. Then, she stood back and watched as Hannah closed her eyes and quickly drifted off to sleep.

Then, she heard soft noises behind her and turned to find Ben hanging his coat and tie on the nail behind the door. She had once again almost forgotten he was still in the room with them.

“I’ll leave you two to sleep,” Rey said, her voice lowered to a whisper. “Good night.”

She had barely stepped out of the room when Ben said, “Rey.”

She stiffened and turned to face him. He’d taken off his glasses too, and he looked very much like his younger self on the photos Hannah had shown her earlier. He looked boyish almost, and if Rey were to be honest with herself, not at all bad looking. “Yes?”

“Thank you. For taking care of Hannah today. And for not sending her away when she arrived,” Ben lowered his head a little. “I can see how much meeting you means to her, so…thank you for being decent.”

Rey’s brows knitted. She wasn’t so sure how to take what he had just said, so she would just take it as an awkward attempt at a compliment and show of gratitude. “It’s not just about being decent, Ben. Hannah’s a wonderful kid. And I meant what I said. I’m happy to have her as my daughter and I’m happy she came to see me. Even if it’s just for a little while.”

Ben lifted his head to stare back at her. She could practically see him trying to process what she had just said but before he could say anything more, she said one more ‘Good night’ and hastily retreated to her room across the hall.

* * *

 

 It was half past midnight when Rey heard her door creak open. She hadn’t been able to sleep, the events of the day still consuming her thoughts so when she heard her door, she quickly bolted upright, only to find Hannah, peeking her head through the door.

“I’m sorry, Rey. Did I wake you?”

“No, sweetie.” Rey’s shoulders relaxed. “Did you need something? Water maybe?”

Hannah shook her head before lowering it. Through the lamplight on her bedside table, Rey could see the girl shuffling her feet. “Can I…sleep here with you?”

Rey blinked, her thoughts immediately on Ben. “What about your daddy?”

“Oh, he’s asleep.” Hannah wrinkled her nose. “And he snores. Loud.”

Rey strained to hear. Sure enough, she could hear muffled snores coming from across the hall.

With a smile and without hesitation, she lifted her blanket and patted the space beside her. Hannah was quick to take up on the offer and crawled into bed beside Rey.

“It’s like a sleepover,” Hannah giggled when she had settled herself under the covers.

“Yeah, it is,” Rey beamed. “But we can’t stay up late. We still have to make an early breakfast tomorrow, remember?”

“I know, but I don’t want this night to end.”

“I don’t want the night to end either, sweetie, but we have to sleep. Especially you since you’re still a growing girl.” Rey reached out to tuck a lock of dark, wavy hair behind Hannah’s ear. “So let’s sleep okay?”

“Okay.” Hannah was quiet for a moment before she turned on her side to face Rey. “I know. Maybe if you tell me a story, I can sleep.”

“Oh.” Rey thought for a minute. “Well, there were a few stories my grandpa used to tell me—”

Hannah shook her head.

Rey frowned. “What?”

Hannah half-hid her face with the blanket. “Tell me the story…of when you decided to donate your eggs.”

Rey blinked and stared at her daughter. Stared into eyes which were so much like her own. Stared until the girl blinked and looked away.

“It’s okay,” Hannah said in a quiet voice. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to, sweetie.” Rey reached out to comb her daughter’s hair away from her face. “It’s just…it’s not a very happy story.”

“It’s not?”

“No, sweetie. It’s not.”

“You donated because you were forced to?”

Rey stared into Hannah’s eyes again. There was an intelligence there that went beyond the girl’s years, and she felt her eyes prickle.

“Yes,” she finally admitted. “I donated because I had no choice. I was only eighteen then. My Grandpa Ben was dying of cancer and his medical bills were astronomical. Donating my eggs was the only way I could think of to pay for his treatments.”

Hannah grew silent, and Rey let the memories sink in as she told the story of a girl barely out of her teens desperately searching from clinic to clinic, state to state until the one in Coruscant City was willing to screen her despite her young age, how happy she was when she passed the screening, those days when she had to endure injections up until the egg retrieval, then the elation of receiving a check which she quickly used to pay for her grandfather’s cancer treatments.

“I’m sorry, Rey,” Hannah finally said. “You’re right; it’s not a happy story.”

“No, it’s not.” Rey shook her head before forcing out a smile. “But you know what? Donating my eggs bought me more time with my Grandpa Ben. I wouldn’t trade that for the world. And you know what else?”

“What?”

“Because of that, I now have you.”

Hannah looked up, her eyes shimmering and her face brightening before she shifted closer to give Rey a tight hug. “I’m glad you donated, Rey. Because of you, I’m alive.”

“Don’t forget your daddy too,” Rey chuckled as she hugged the girl back. “It takes two to make a baby, you know.”

“Yeah.” Hannah yawned and extricated herself from Rey’s arms. “Daddy…he picked you because he found you really pretty. Grandma said so.”

Rey froze. “He…what?”

Hannah nodded and yawned again. “Grandma was there when Daddy picked your picture out of the egg clinic catalogue. I think…he had…a crush…on you…”

And with that, Hannah drifted off to sleep, her soft snores mirroring that of her father’s from across the hall.

Rey lay on her back and stared at the ceiling, her daughter’s words now ringing on her head.

Great. Now she was going to have even more trouble sleeping tonight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's that? Ben picked Rey because he found her pretty? Someone spilled the beans. LOL I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I'm gonna try not to make you guys wait too long for the next one, though I'm still figuring that out as well. Hopefully I'll get a few ideas. Thanks again for reading and see you in future updates!


	6. Chapter 6

The chirping of birds was what woke Ben Solo from a sound sleep. He wasn’t a light sleeper by any stretch of the imagination, but something about today was different. For one thing, there were chirping birds—a rarity in the city of Coruscant. Then there was this lumpy mattress which smelled of laundry detergent…

That’s when he remembered.

Hannah, not being home when he arrived early for once. Hannah, not answering her phone, her once pristine room a mess of open closet doors, strewn clothes on an unmade bed, and a missing luggage. Hannah, running away. Again. Her phone’s GPS tracker leading him all the way to Outer Rim State and into Jakku town. To the doorstep of one Rey Kenobi…

Rey…

Ben groaned loudly and turned to his side, expecting to see his daughter sleeping beside him, only to come face to face with an empty space on the bed.

He blinked and sat up, looking around the room with sleepy eyes. His vision was all a blur without his glasses but he could still tell that Hannah wasn’t in the room with him.

He reached out for his glasses from the nightstand and put them on. Could Hannah and Rey be cooking the early breakfast they had talked about the night before? He couldn’t smell anything, nor could he hear any activity within the small house. Everything was quiet, save for the birds chirping incessantly outside.

Swinging his legs to the side of the bed, he put on his shoes and walked out of the room.

That’s when he noticed the door across the hall was ajar, and through the morning light, he saw the small shape of his daughter, sleeping right beside Rey.

Envy and hurt lanced through his heart all at once. To think that his daughter would prefer the company of a stranger instead of him actually left him pained, and he began to wonder if the past year of throwing himself at work had caused a rift between Hannah and himself. They certainly hadn’t been able to spend as much time together, ever since his father’s death the year before. But hadn’t he provided for her everything she needed and wanted? Maybe not his full attention, but still…

Ben sighed. No, he thought. It was much more than that. More than his own neglect, Hannah had found out in the worst way possible why she was brought in to this world. That had been the first time Hannah ran away, and no matter how many times Ben apologized, no matter how many times he had told her he hadn’t meant the things he had said, he knew it had broken his little girl’s heart.

It probably still did.

He shook his head from the memories and gingerly stepped into the room, making sure to walk in as quietly as possible so as not to wake the girls. Once at their bedside, he leaned over to tuck the blanket beneath his daughter’s chin before his eyes moved to Rey. She was sleeping on her side just like Hannah, and they both looked so much alike that it wouldn’t take a genius to tell that they were indeed mother and daughter—from the freckles, the dimples, the nose, the eyes, he had gotten what he had hoped for, for Hannah to take after her mother—the young woman whose picture had caught Ben’s eye in that catalogue all those years ago…

The young woman who was sleeping beside his… _their_ daughter.

The young woman who was still as beautiful as he remembered her…

Ben blinked as he caught himself and took a step back, a loud creak echoing through the small room. He must have stepped on a creaky floorboard but before he could turn and walk away, he saw Rey stir and blink up at him.

It took only a few seconds for her to sit up in a panic. “Ben! What are you—”

He quickly put a forefinger to his lips and pointed at Hannah, who was still lightly snoring beside Rey.

“Woke up to find Hannah gone,” he explained in a whisper. “Just came in to check. Sorry if I startled you.”

“Oh.” Rey rubbed her eyes and looked at Hannah for a moment before turning back to Ben. “I’m sorry. She wanted to sleep beside me. I couldn’t say no.”

Ben nodded, but didn’t say anything. Only stared as Rey looked around nervously. She was only in a white tank top and pajama bottoms, which he found actually…fetching on her. He quickly perished the thought.

“Uhm…what time is it?” Rey asked.

He held his wristwatch to his face. “6:15.”

“Already? Oh my gosh, I gotta get to work.” Rey started to rise from bed when Hannah moaned in her sleep. Ben watched her gaze at the sleeping child for a moment before he saw what he thought to be a mischievous glint in her eye.

“You know what?” she grinned, “I think I’ll call in sick today.”

Ben shook his head. “You really don’t have to do that. Hannah and I can leave early.”

“It’s fine. I’ve never taken a sick day. It’s high time I did.” Rey shrugged and tucked Hannah’s hair behind her ear, making Ben’s lips flatten into a line. Hannah never did like showing her big ears, which she had inherited from him. He made a mental note to mention it later if he could. “Besides, it’s not every day I get to cook breakfast for my daughter.”

“I seem to recall you telling Hannah you’d be making breakfast together,” he reminded.

“Oh, right.” Rey nodded then looked at Hannah with a frown. “I’d hate to wake her. She’s sleeping so soundly.”

“Then don’t. Let her sleep in for a while.”

Rey looked up at Ben in clear surprise. “You sure that’s okay?”

“Yeah.” Ben crossed his arms, and in a tone that bordered on teasing, said, “If I’ll bet anything, she stayed up late. You two probably chatted up a storm again.”

He saw Rey blush and look away. “Yeah. Hannah’s quite the chatterbox.” A moment of silence passed before she turned to him again. “So…would you like some coffee?”

He nodded. “Coffee would be nice.”

* * *

 

Rey walked into the kitchen, her fluffy bedroom slippers barely making a noise on the floorboards as she walked towards the counter to pour herself and Ben a cup of coffee.

“How was your sleep?” she asked by way of small talk as Ben took a seat on the dining table.

“I slept through the night, so that’s good I guess,” he answered. He still had bed hair, Rey noticed, which he hastily combed away with his fingers. Ben had really large hands, she thought, before quickly shaking the image from her head.

“Good. Good.” Rey sat across from Ben, watching as he took a few sips from his cup. “How’s the coffee? I could get more sugar and cream if you want.”

“I usually prefer my coffee black, but this is okay.”

“Okay.”

“Mmhm.”

Rey bit her lip and looked around. She was running out of things to say. This man before her was an enigma to say the least. She remembered him being quite rude the night before, then suddenly bordering on…nice? Then maybe a bit awkward? And of course, there was the matter of what Hannah had said about him having a crush on her…

Rey shook her head softly before plastering on a smile. “So…what’s the plan?”

“The plan?” Ben cocked an eyebrow and took another sip of coffee. “The plan is to have breakfast here before I take Hannah back to Coruscant where she belongs.”

“Oh.” Rey tried not to look dejected. What was she expecting anyway? She had only offered for them to stay the night, and the night was already over. It was time to face reality. She wasn’t going to see her daughter ever again.

 “Would you…like to stay in touch?”

Startled, Rey looked up to see if Ben had indeed said those words. She saw his face and ears turn a shade of red before he continued, “With Hannah. I mean with Hannah. Would you like to stay in touch with her?”

“Y-Yes, of course,” Rey nodded, far more enthusiastically than she should have. “I’d love to stay in touch with her.”

A thick silence fell in the kitchen as Ben’s eyes bored into hers. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat, unsure exactly what this man was thinking until he reached out for something in his pocket, producing what looked like a business card, which he handed to Rey.

Rey stared at the card. It read Benjamin Organa Solo, Solo Shipping Ltd. It had his numbers, e-mail address, office address and website.

“You can reach me via those numbers,” Ben said, stating the obvious. “I’d much rather you contact me first if you want to talk to Hannah. You may be her mother, but you’re still a stranger. I hope you understand that.”

His voice was flat when he said it, and it hurt. Rey thought that after last night, maybe she had made a bit of progress from being just a stranger, but no, Ben was right. One night of bonding didn’t automatically make her family. There was more to family than just biology, she knew that. But it didn’t make his words hurt any less.

“Thank you,” she muttered and stood up to place the business card on the refrigerator, tucking it under one of her many ref magnets before returning to the table to sip on her coffee.

Silence became their companion once more. Rey didn’t know what else she could say to this man and frankly, she was too miserable to make any more small talk. She would rather sit in this awkward silence while waiting for Hannah to wake up. And when the girl did, at least then she could pretend that everything was right in the world, that she wasn’t alone. That she still somehow had family…

“Why did you donate your eggs?” Ben suddenly asked. “Was it for the money?”

She could see his eyes wandering around her not-so-pristine home, and she felt herself bristle.

“Yes, if you must know, it was for the money,” she answered tersely. “To pay for my grandpa’s medical bills.”

“I see…” Ben nodded, seemingly unperturbed by the way she almost spat out her answer. “That was very noble of you.”

Rey blinked and stared at him as he nonchalantly took another sip of coffee. How this man could go from insulting her to complimenting her was making her head spin. It was just like the night before—one minute he was a jerk, the next minute considerate. He was constantly catching her off guard.

Well, two can play this game, she thought. “What about you? Any noble reasons for deciding to have Hannah?”

She was quick to notice the way Ben flattened his lips into a line and the way his eyes grew dark. She’d hit a nerve somehow, and she wasn’t going to let it go.

“You must’ve had a pretty good reason,” Rey pressed on. “Hannah mentioned you never even had a wife so…why would a single man want to have a child all by himself?”

“If you must know, it wasn’t for me.” Ben’s voice was low. “It was for my father.”

That gave Rey a pause, and her mind instantly went to a movie she had seen a few years back. “Wait…this isn’t a ‘My Sister’s Keeper’ thing is it?”

Ben frowned. “What?”

“I mean…you didn’t have her just so you can harvest stem cells from her or something for your father’s treatment, right?”

It took a moment before Ben’s lips curled into a smile. It was followed by a light chuckle, which jarred Rey to the core. She had never seen him laugh or smile, and there was something about it that made her face warm. He looked young. Boyish almost, and it was then she realized he wasn’t really as unattractive as she had initially thought.

“No, nothing complicated like that,” Ben shook his head, still smiling before, seemingly catching himself, stopped. “Though if that had been the case, Hannah would hate me even more.”

“Wait, hate you?” Now, Rey’s curiosity was really piqued. “Why would you say she hates you?”

“Why do you think she ran away? Twice?” Ben asked, bitterness dripping from his every word. “Why do you think she’d rather sleep beside you than with me?”

“She said it was because you snored.”

“No, it’s more than that.”

“More than…your neglect of her?” Rey ventured, fully expecting Ben to grow angry but instead found him even more dejected.

“That’s part of it I suppose,” he admitted, “but it’s not just that.”

“Then, what is it?” Rey asked gently and waited for Ben to answer. He didn’t, and the silence stretched on until Rey was fully convinced he wasn’t going to continue with the conversation.

Until that was, he did, and what Rey found out then shed more light to the rift between father and daughter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry to leave you guys with a cliffhanger! I was supposed to continue on, but it got too long that I decided to split it into the next chapter instead. The next chapter's already outlined so hopefully you guys won't have to wait too long for the next one. As always, thanks to shwtlee (shwtlee2reylo) for the beta read! Until next time guys!

**Author's Note:**

> If the plot device is familiar, that's because I got it from an episode of I think that was the last season of Ally Mcbeal. I could never quite forget that plot device of Ally's surprise daughter suddenly showing up at her doorstep and thought it would be a great trope to use for a Reylo AU fic. But the similarities pretty much end there as this story will be its own.
> 
> In the meantime, feel free to sound off your thoughts, or just bookmark this for future updates. Thanks for reading!


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